Time is running out in today’s Hulu Days of Summer premiere, Spy Game. Directed by Tony Scott (Top Gun, Enemy of the State) , this thinking man’s thriller uses flashbacks to piece together the stories of CIA agents Nathan Muir (Robert Redford) and his protégé, Tom Bishop (Brad Pitt), as Muir plans a rescue operation to free Bishop from a Chinese prison.

The fast-paced action spans the Vietnam War to the end of the Cold War — the eve of Muir’s retirement from the Agency, in fact. When news of Bishop’s arrest and pending execution arrive at CIA headquarters, it’s considered a diplomatic disaster. As the powers that be try to determine whether to stage a prison break or simply let Bishop die, Muir plays a spy game of his own, secretly working to ensure the rogue agent’s freedom.

No stranger to action, Scott manages to pack a fair share of action into several flashbacks that depict the two agents’ careers, including their time in Vietnam, training and missions in Berlin, a critical operation in Beirut, and, later on, a falling out between the mentor and his student.

But what’s most notable about Spy Game is how Redford immersed himself into his role as Nathan Muir. We’re given little to no information about Muir, yet we come to care about the character by the end of the movie, saying a lot for Redford’s performance. We see how Muir has a conscience and values, even when the other CIA operatives do not.